Timothy Cardinal Dolan Celebrates Shabbat At Temple Emanu-El In Show Of Support For Jewish Community Amid Rise In Anti-Semitic Attacks
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Timothy Cardinal Dolan celebrated Shabbat at Temple Emanu-El in Manhattan on Friday in a show of solidarity as the city and country experience a rise in anti-Semitic incidents.
The Archbishop of New York warmly greeted the senior rabbi at Temple Emanu-El for the interfaith visit on the Upper East Side.
"There's too much fracture. There's too much division, and when one of us is in trouble, we all feel the sting," Dolan said.
Dolan took the short drive north from St. Patrick's Cathedral to celebrate the Sabbath.
It's a show of support from the Roman Catholic faith to the Jewish faith at a time when, a grateful senior Rabbi Joshua Davidson says, they need it.
"What makes friends friends is that they know when you need them without even being asked, and Cardinal Dolan is our friend," Davidson said.
As CBS2's Andrea Grymes reports, statistics show anti-Semitic incidents are on the rise, especially in reaction to the recent conflict between Israel and Hamas.
The Anti-Defamation League says during the two weeks of military conflict this month, anti-Semitic incidents in the United States reported to the ADL increased by 75% from 127 to 222 compared to the two weeks prior.
In New York City, the NYPD says there's been a 29% spike year-to-date through Sunday. There have been 80 anti-Semitic hate crimes compared to 62 for the same period last year.
All of this, Davidson says, leading to a sense of deep anxiety.
"We're seeing how hatred of Israel can descend into hatred of Jews or, at the very least, give license to its expression," he said. "The only way to address it is for people to come together and call it out for what it is."
Davidson hopes in the short term, the cease-fire in the Middle East will help stop this disturbing trend we're seeing here.
